Walt
by EthoSloth
Summary: Iruka's legacy is far greater than what he could ever imagine. All it takes is a single day to change the course of many years.


**Prologue**

Blood. Bleeding. Iruka was bleeding. What was Naruto supposed to do? He tried to cover up the wounds, but the blood spurted through. Iruka's flak jacket, his pride and joy, was dyed red. Naruto's hands wouldn't stop shaking, his legs felt like rusty bones, and his arms like loose ropes. He needed help. Quickly, he screamed.

"Help!"

Louder.

"Help!"

He lifted Iruka on his shoulders, still so sure of the beating heart throbbing in his friends chest, he moved.

.

.

.

He walked and walked, he summoned Kage Bunshin, who were ordered to carry him and Iruka when he fell unconscious. This happened in a few seconds.

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, did not need anyone to tell him how badly he had messed up. The fact that he had let the situation unfold despite the fact that it was well within his power to stop at any moment was just proof of this.

Naruto had ran away with the Forbidden Scroll, yes. But Sarutobi was the Hokage, for crying out loud! He should never have entertained that. Yes, he had realised that the Scroll only held two techniques, and yes, he had also known that neither of them were a threat. That was why he hadn't done anything.

He had been rather glad that Naruto had taken the forbidden scroll, in fact. Naruto had too much chakra to entertain the thought of using the Bunshin Jutsu, but the Kage Bunshin seemed to be created for him. The idea of Naruto utilizing Kage Bunshin was an inspired one, and Sarutobi had seen in that single second, Naruto who could fight a war all alone, with just a never ending supply of clones. It was a long shot, but he had seen it.

The Reaper Death Seal might have remotely concerned him. But he would digress. It was a sealing masterpiece only recreatable with genius level intellect and sealing experience. Plus, it had been full of rather boring theory, if he recalled the amount of brooding he had to put up with when Minato was learning it. He didn't believe Naruto could learn such a thing.

But what he hadn't expected, was Orochimaru's tinkering with all of Konoha's affairs. Mizuki had been a rather controversial shinobi to begin with. A seemingly normal A-Classed mission with a handful of red herrings and the death of a teammate that didn't equal out with witness accounts had Mizuki painted in red to begin with.

Naruto should have never fallen for Mizuki's front, but that was just a thought meant to shift some of the Hokage's guilt on the poor boy lying unconscious in the Hospital.

* * *

When Naruto woke up, he was greeted with silence. He was used to this, at least. He sat up on what he had assumed was his own bed, and found, much to his displeasure, that this wasn't his room. How amazing would it have been if all of that had been a dream?

The moon glowed brightly outside. The stars shone and the breeze blew. But none of that reached Naruto's hospital room. His head was a city full of fog, and his hands might have been dosed with some sedative. They felt like boulders, tying him onto the bed. His toes felt icy, and his ears felt numb. He hated it.

He sat up, and dozens of bones clicked and clacked. He wasn't being treated for anything, he supposed. There were no syringes, no bandages. It was just him in a hospital room. How swell. He made the effort to get up, and heard even more crunches. How many days had he slept through?

The door opened up to a small balcony, where he discovered a little chair. The cold wind cut his cheeks, and the moon seemed as bright as the sun. Naruto lowered his head.

"Of all the things you could be doing right now," he heard a voice. Maybe it wasn't really there, but as long as he didn't look back, he wouldn't ever need to know. He kept his head lowered.

"What should I do?"

"Hmm, well, surely something? Sitting here won't get you anywhere. You could practice kunai throwing, maybe try out the new bunshin technique you learned? Practice your taijutsu? I keep telling you that you're sloppy when it comes to taijutsu."

The nagging voice made Naruto calm, and the fog started to clear. Naruto snorted.

"Ne, Sensei, am I a shinobi?"

"Sure you are! Definitely. Talk to Hokage-sama. I'm certain even he knows you deserve it."

"Wanna have ramen today?"

It was the voice's turn to snort.

"I don't earn that much, Naruto, maybe tomorrow. I have to finish some of that paperwork for the new genin teams. I love teaching, but it sure is troublesome. Well...see you tomorrow Naruto…"

"Yeah, I'll see you around, Iruka-sensei."

He thought the door might have closed. He sighed. Maybe he could look back now.

* * *

**AN/Please review and share your opinions. **


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